Nigeria have qualified for the knockout stages of the African Cup of Nations after defeating the Wild Dogs of Guinea Bissau in the final round of the qualifying matches 1-0.
The Eagles led by 1-0 at halftime and had many chances of doubling in the 64th minute.
Iwobi had an opportunity to double Nigeria’s lead, but his attempt drifted away from the goal.
A substitution followed in the 62nd minute, with Frank Onyeka and Joe Aribo making way for Raphael Onyedika and Alex Iwobi.
Despite Nigeria’s dominance, the 58th minute saw Osimhen tapping into an empty net, only for the referee to rule it as a handball.
Osimhen had another chance in the 54th minute when he connected to an Aina cross, but his header narrowly missed the goal.
The second half started with a yellow card for Frank Onyeka after a rough challenge on Gomes. Guinea Bissau had a free kick in Nigeria’s half, but the shot posed no danger.
Nigeria secured the lead in the 35th minute with an own goal by Opa Sagante. The first half concluded with Equatorial Guinea leading 1-0 in the other group game.
Osimhen had a header in the added time of the first half, bouncing away from goal for a Guinea Bissau goal kick. The Super Eagles had quick chances, but they resulted in infringements in favor of Guinea Bissau.
The cooling break came at the 30th minute, and despite a corner for Guinea Bissau in the 21st minute, Nigeria’s defense averted potential danger. Joe Aribo’s shot was blocked in the 19th minute, and Nigeria faced two offside calls in the 16th and 15th minutes.
Guinea Bissau attempted a long-range shot in the 6th minute, calmly dealt with by Nwabali. Victor Osimhen initiated the game with a shot in the 2nd minute that drifted wide.
As the match unfolded, the Super Eagles aimed to secure qualification for the next round of AFCON 2023, with the hope of overcoming Guinea Bissau, who had defeated them in the AFCON qualifiers in 2023.
The Nigeria XI featured Stanley Nwabali, Ola Aina, Calvin Bassey, Kenneth Omeruo, Semi Ajayi, Bright Osayi-Samuel, Joe Aribo, Frank Onyeka, Samuel Chukwueze, Simon Moses, and Victor Osimhen. The team sought redemption after a draw and a win in the previous AFCON matches. [GWG]
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